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Kaoboi Bebobp
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Posts posted by Kaoboi Bebobp
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17 hours ago, charlie farnsbarns said:
No. I've toured the whole country and Vietnam is quite friendly and good for visitors. Quiet-spoken, law-abiding people. Never been scammed (except by the immigration 'stamping fee'). Love the no tipping policy.
Just back from a trip to Dalat and for this place didn't even need the visa approval letter and stamping fee as there is no VOA process at the airport - just went straight through immigration on a Brit passport with everyone else on the flight. I was simply asked 'how long are you staying?'. I said 'five days' and was stamped in with a smile.
Let me understand this: You and the passengers arrived in Da Lat straight from another country and didn't have to show a visa upon entry? That's quite a loophole, if I'm reading your report correctly. Brits and several other Euro nationalities can enter visa-free. But what of the others who arrived?
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5 hours ago, samuttodd said:
OK, We have elected to do an exploratory run into Viet territory. I will provide a complete written report with updates when we have been placed in theatre.
Good idea. I think you will like it.
Now, you seem to be focusing on rip-offs. To wit: The taxi ride from Saigon airport to downtown should run 130,000 - 150,000 VND depending on traffic. Only take Mai Linh or Vinasun taxis at the airport lineup just outside the customs hall exit. Insist on it with the touts, who will be wearing taxi uniforms in company colours. They speak English.
If you need VND on arrival, just outside the customs hall are kiosks for mobile phone SIMs and Viet bank exchanges desks. Go to Exim Bank on the far right. They tended to have good rates. Pick up more VND later downtown at the gold shops or actual exchanges. I always have Exim or ACB Bank for-ex tables up and ready on my phone to check what the rate should be. You can check the rates via the SGN Airport free wi-fi. I've never been quoted outrageous exchange rates. But then, I don't shop in the markets.
After that, I really don't think you're going to be a price victim unless you insist on going to the Ben Thanh market or other places where you have to negotiate prices. However, your wife is used to this kind of thing so let her do the talking. Vendors are very likely to have good English speaking staffer or two, after they discover your wife's not Vietnamese, as noted by Nan Laew above.
There have been many good threads on all the VN issues in this subforum.
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2 hours ago, Nyezhov said:
So basically, take a wad of baht over to Vasu or Superrich and get some greenbacks. Or dip into my stash of Cs and get smalls.
Whats a good amount to take you think.... $100 a day exclusive of hotels?
A meal is $3-$5, a draft beer 50-75 cents, whiskey $2-$3. PassApp tuktuk $1.50 or thereabouts. Cigs $1.50.
Now, if you go to some super-friendly bars and the super-friendly staff surround you and put loads of super-friendly drinks on your tab, well, the sky's the limit. Up to you, mate.
Take some $US small bills with you but wait till you get to SR and PP and change more baht into $US as you need them. I always found the street-side exchanges pretty decent.
In PP, use the exchanges farthest from the Central Market or farthest from Riverside. You will pay a big premium if you use the ones right inside or just on the outside of say Central Market. Check the Cambodian banks (Canadia, ABA, Acleda) online for-ex tables and work from there. In the past, the street-side exchanges weren't a lot better than say, Canadia Bank in Sorya Shopping Center (St. 63, 100 metres from Central Market).
Can't remember the SR rates but always go to ones farthest from the main tourist streets such as Pub Street. Or just check and compare. If you want to change say 5000 baht, figure out the range of exchange amounts you will accept before you ask, how much? Some exchanges will have the rates on the wall boards. Those are the ones I favour.
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On 12/20/2019 at 6:37 PM, DannyCarlton said:
What happened to the UK? Currently visa free but due to run out next year.
The five nationalities, including UKers, still get the visa waiver until June 2021, as reported last May.
https://www.ttrweekly.com/site/2018/05/vietnam-extends-visa-free-deal/
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Now, now, don't be so hard on Mr Cheeseman. He might be correct. Just a few simple things need to be done to make this real.
Put in place a serious municipal government, serious professional police, fire and ambulance services, clean and effective garbage pickup service, a ground-up infrastructure rebuild, a marine engineering assessment led by foreign specialists to rebuild and maintain the beach area, impose residential zoning and commercial zoning, ban buses from the downtown, and dependable flood-proof transit system.
Now, that wasn't so hard was it?
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I flew into Bangkok from Saigon earlier this week. There were dozens of empty seats on the Vietnam Airlines noon hour flight. Near the end of the flight, I stood up and tried to count the empties. More than 50 empties on a 195-seat Airbus 321. I did this route quite often the last seven years and have never seen a Vietnam to Thailand flight with so few occupied seats.
Whereas my BKK-to-SGN flight was full.
Dream on, TAT.
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On 12/18/2019 at 10:44 PM, moonseeker said:
Even many of the once very popular hotels are far from fully booked. Some of the discounts are unbeatable and prices mostly much lower than prior years. Some very good deals for Xmas week. Check other search engines and even more vacancies appear. Don't fall for the "last room" bs. Merry Christmas. MS>
Agreed. Lots of rooms. My favourite condo place behind Big C Extra on Klang has a lot of choice and prices running 700 to 1100 baht. I used the dates Dec. 22 to 27.
What I have noticed is that, throughout the year, it's become easier to get a room and especially more affordable the last year and a half compared with 2-3 years ago.
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2.02 million Chinese so far, already 24.4% ahead of the year-ago period. That pretty much finishes off any idea of moving back to Cambodia. Friends in Phnom Penh say the invasion of Chinese businessmen and other long-stayers has put quite a bit of upward pressure on apartment rents and will only get worse. Some there are considering switching to central VN.
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When you see "instruct" or "order," there follows a vast cascade of words flowing out into infinity, signifying abso-freakin-lutely nothing.
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Might try SC Phesat Pharmacy on Rama 4, a big, high volume, lower price pharmacy. Just past the Crowne Plaza Hotel, coming from Silom MRT. Been shopping there for years.
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Visitors to Vietnam in November rose a stunning 39% over the year-ago month, reaching a new record high of more than 1.8 million. This follows October's 34% year-over-year increase.
Asian tourists accounted for a staggering 81% of total number of visitors in November, with total Asian visitors soaring 47% from the previous November. The Chinese represented 77% of the spike in arrivals. (Bye, bye Thailand.)
QuoteWith the surge in November, the total number of foreign tourists in the January-November period of 2019 has amounted to nearly 16.3 million, a 15% year-on-year increase.
Almost 13 million of them came from Asia, with the number of Chinese and South Koreans exceeding 5.2 million and 3.8 million, respectively.
https://english.thesaigontimes.vn/73166/int’l-tourists-to-vietnam-up-39-y-o-y-in-nov.html
Europe contributed a 13.4% increase, mostly from Russia. The Americas chipped in 10% more, mostly from the US, with a 19% increase. Numbers by nationality:
https://tradingeconomics.com/vietnam/tourist-arrivals
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31 minutes ago, tabarin said:Stop with that nonsense, you can simply fly to Thailand for getting some medical too.
And I guarantee you, within a few years, Vietnam will have as many good hospitals too. They are behind but developing 10x faster.Indeed. JCI-accredited Vinmec has built three state of the art hospitals in Nha Trang, Da Nang and HCMC. More to come.
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25 minutes ago, fhickson said:your not going to find it very relaxing when you need medical and your uninsured in vietnam
Pacific Cross operates in Vietnam and I can get very affordable extensive medical care package from the JCI-accredited French Vietnam Hospital in District 7, an hour away, for a fraction of the Thai ripoff policies.
I've done my research, as one should.
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Just met a well monied Brit here in Vung Tau, Vietnam yesterday. First time here after 18 straight years of holidaying in Pattaya. He's finished with Patttaya and brought his £4000 play money to VN. He seemed pretty pleased with his visit, with some British buddies on the way, also making their first visits, he told me.
Have to say, having visited Vung Tau many times and having lived here for two years, it's the busiest I've ever seen it. The notorious Red Parrot was packed at about 9 pm, even after 2-for-1 deal ended, daytime eateries busy with tourists, both single expats and quite a few families and older western couples. Last night all the tables were full at the French Bistro 9. Even the Offshore, which has been in decline, had dozens of diners. Ned Kelley's busy as always and Belly's terrace nearly full. I got around last night.
On the second day of returning to Vietnam, suddenly all the stress of Thailand expat living faded away. Having moved back to Bangkok last August and facing being hit with the sham insurance on my next extension, I'm considering moving back here and leaving behind the constant immigration and police aggravation. Retirement is supposed to be a low-stress lifestyle.
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7 hours ago, Langsuan Man said:
Would someone please answer a question that is of interest to Thai Visa readers of the pedantic thread
Can you obtain a "O" visa based on retirement at the Thai Consulate in: ?
The consulate web site specifically lists only 3 "O" categories: supporting Thai children, married to a Thai and joining a volunteer organization. And there's the O-A for Viet citizens, I guess.
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As always, thank you @Sheryl for sharing your extensive, professional knowledge.
I've spent some time in Siem Reap 3-4 years ago and liked it. It's one city I keep on the list of possible places to live. While I don't have any threatening medical issues, it still worries me a bit should I have a motorcycle accident or need for intensive care.
Moving along: SR does suffer from power outages and water shortages. One does need to live in a place with power generators. Has anyone experienced outages or shortages lately?
I've read there is a Makro in SR. Anyone surveyed the grocery lineup, particularly the meat and vegetable supply?
Thanks to all for your input.
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I've got a couple of pals, long-time Pattaya visitors, just returned for the first time in nearly two years. Yeah, the exchange rate kept my Brit friends home. They've posted some photos of their bar tour. The striking thing was the empty bar stools and tables in New Plaza (and elsewhere). "The Plaza looks empty," I say. "Yeah pretty much is mate," was the reply. And not once does a moto or car pass by in the background in a string of photos. No mobile vendors either.
You could usually count on NP being somewhat busy most times of the year. I was in NP in the first week of November. The place was a ghost town.
When all is said and done, Pattaya doesn't do much for me any more, which has been the case for several years now and I only use it to catch up with the odd visiting friend.
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12 minutes ago, bangkokequity said:
I hear Vietnam is a great fit for some people ... so ... why did you leave it?
I don't really want to go off topic here but as always, there are pros and cons. This thread, which contains some posts by me, is worth reading from the beginning.
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3 hours ago, chilli42 said:
I concur, I detest the place. The only plus I can think of is affordability. I lived in Canada with my Thai wife for 3 years. She hated it - boring was the first word out her mouth followed closely by Canadians have no sense of humor (maybe she meant me). Well, to each their own. I would happily leave Bangkok and never come back. Happy wife happy life.
I bemoan the day I moved back to polluted, noisy, expensive, stressful Bangkok from Vietnam 5 months ago. I knew it was going to be expensive but you really don't know how much until the thousand baht notes start flying out the wallet in pairs and the debit card spends more time in the ATM slot than the wallet. And I'm just talking about every day expenses. I gave up the night life years ago.
Unfortunately, I still have substantial amount of money on deposit. When the lease (and O-A-based retirement extension) ends, so does my tenure here. I'm considering returning to Vietnam next spring. I'm starting off with a visit there next week.
Off topic: Where did you live, Edmonton? Lacking sense of humour? I've found life pretty smooth and friendly the last few years of revisiting Toronto, for example. Maybe your wife was setting you up because she really REALLY wanted to move back to Thailand. I know some Thais and Viets in Canada and the US, none of whom want to go back to the home country. Full stop. Not even to visit family.
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Strange that Vietnam was not tested. They're usually pretty good in sciences and mathematics, plus a lot of them learn English. A Viet team ranked 7th out of 110 teams in the International Mathematics Olympiad held in the UK last July. I figure the Viets would rank in the top 25 at least in the PISA tests.
But Philippines? Really? Bottom of the pack in the PISA tests.
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6 minutes ago, Matzzon said:That´s impossible. There is no city with the name of Saigon.
Old folks like me still call it Saigon and SGN is still the three-letter airport code. Don't call it Ho Chi Minh among the Viets in North America.
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The once-a-day flights begin Dec. 23 running between U-Tapao and Saigon. They're up on the VJ schedule now.
QuoteOn the occasion, the carrier offered 100,000 tickets priced at 0 VND, exclusive of tax and fees, from 12-14pm during December 2-5.
http://dtinews.vn/en/news/017004/65367/vietjet-air-to-open-ho-chi-minh-city---pattaya-route.html
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On 12/1/2019 at 7:24 AM, jack7106 said:
Would definitely not be a career move, you have enough interference by the police taking photos in the general public and of governmental buildings????????♂️????????????
^^^^This. I know people who were taking photos of government or Party buildings and were threatened with confiscation of their camera or ordered to delete images.
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Simple. Go to Cambodia, take a hotel night, ask the front desk to call. Done.
Vietnam Visa Info
in Vietnam Visa and Immigration
Posted · Edited by Kaoboi Bebobp
Fix
This would be an extremely radical move and makes no sense considering VN wants to increase tourism as much as possible. Are we talking retro-active cuts to already issued multi-month visa periods? Or are we talking about a complete ban on tourist visas any longer than 30 days? Are you sure about this? It would be nice to get a link to the FB discussion. I checked the Da Nang-Hoi An FB page but saw nothing.
I will do some more checking around.